Regional Second Instance Courts Will Hear Cases in Turkey from 20 July 2016

Regional second instance courts will hear cases in Turkey from 20 July 2016. These courts will hear certain cases before they can be brought before the Court of Appeal. Preparations for a two tiered legal remedy system have been ongoing for several years in Turkey. Changes have also been made to the Code of Civil Procedure ("CCP") and Code of Administrative Procedure ("CAP").

Resolutions by the Ministry of Justice ("MoJ") and the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors ("SBoJP") radically change legal remedies available in the Turkish legal system.

In the civil jurisdiction, the CCP outlines all necessary provisions for a two tiered legal remedy system. However, the system is not functioning yet because facilities for regional second courts of instance are not operating. Hence, only the CCP's appellate provisions will be in force until 20 July 2016.

In the administrative jurisdiction, regional second instance courts are already operating, but they do not currently hear cases as a mandatory step in the chain of legal remedies. Rather, they act as Court of Appeal for some decisions by Administrative Courts and Tax Courts. From 20 July 2015, regional second instance courts in the administrative jurisdiction will exclusively hear cases as a step of a two tiered legal remedy system.

According to the Resolutions published in the Official Gazette, there will be 15 regional second instance courts in the civil jurisdiction and eight in the administrative jurisdiction.

Below you can find links for the Resolutions (Only available in Turkish):

Information first published in the MA | Gazette, a fortnightly legal update newsletter produced by Moroğlu Arseven.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.